Projects
FLASH radiation therapy to improve the therapeutic management of breast cancer by reducing radiationÂinduced skin, soft tissue, lung and heart toxicities. University of Antwerp
Quest for tissue biomarkers for immune therapy in non-small cell lung cancer KU Leuven
The research and quest for tissue biomarkers for immune therapy in non-small cell lung cancer. Defining immunological heterogeneity within tumours and correlate intra-tumour heterogeneity with response on immune treatment
Dynamic modelling of human progressive lung fibrosis in a human lung on chip KU Leuven
My research goal is to develop beyond state-of-the-art patient-derived complex cell models of interstitial lung diseases with progressive fibrosis (PF-ILD), amenable to precision medicine and implementation within drug discovery initiatives for better anti-fibrotic or disease modifying drugs. PF-ILD has a fatal outcome, with lung transplantation as only therapeutic option. Recent antifibrotic drugs can only slow down but not halt the disease. ...
Histopathologic evaluation of the different fenotypes of chronic lung allograft dysfunction after lung transplantation KU Leuven
Lung transplantation is a life-saving treatment option for patients with chronic end-stage lung diseases. Worldwide, more than 50,000 lung transplantations have been performed. However, survival remains hampered by the development of chronic rejection (CR), which affects almost 50% of patients within 5 years after lung transplantation. CR is a heterogeneous condition and the clinical differential diagnosis remains troublesome. In this ...
Multimodal dual-imaging-derived biomarkers for unravelling host response from lung disease progression in cystic lung fibrosis, infection and therapy KU Leuven
Despite the significant advances made by the introduction of imaging techniques for lung diseases and fungal infection research, there are still important gaps where we identify three priorities we want to address with our project. First, we will address the need for alternative antifungal treatment approaches by investigating fungicidal combinatorial treatment in vivo in mouse models of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) (context of ...
A living tissue bank of patient-derived cell lines from high-grade brain cancer KU Leuven
Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive primary central nervous system malignancy with a median survival of about 15 months upon maximal standard-of-care therapy. Even though the genetic aberrations of GBM have been studied extensively, treatment options remain limited and very inefficient. To speed up the identification of alternative therapeutic approaches, in vitro studies on cancer cell lines offer a valid strategy. However, ...
DonoR-specific antilbodiES in cryo-bioPsIes and bRonchoAlveolar lavage fluid during rejecTIOn after luNg transplantation [Acronym: RESPIRATION] KU Leuven
The roll of regulatory cells in rejection post lung transplant KU Leuven
Chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD) continues to pose a significant challenge to long-term survival after lung transplantation. CLAD is a complex condition caused by a multifactorial process with alloimmune-dependent and -independent factors. Alloimmune-dependent factors are related to the alloimmune response from the recipient directed against the ‘nonself’ donor, referred to as allograft rejection. The objective of this PhD project ...